Early Career
Mason's early career was spent at the Royal Greenwich Observatory near London. He served as assistant astronomer from 1756 to 1760 under the Reverend James Bradley, the Astronomer Royal.
While employed at the Greenwich Observatory, Mason became familiar with Professor Tobias Mayer’s Tables of the Moon. The Lunar Tables were designed to solve the problem of determining longitude at sea, a challenge that frustrated scientists and navigators for decades. Mason worked throughout his life to perfect the Lunar Tables as a method of improving navigation at sea. In 1787, Mason was awarded £750 by the Board of Longitude for his work on perfecting the Tables.
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